Royalty Dispute

05.04.13

Harper Lee Sues Former Literary Agent

For allegedly taking advantage of the ailing author.

The famously reclusive Harper Lee isn't always able to stay out of the spotlight. On Friday, the 87-year-old author filed suit against her former literary agent in New York federal court. The complaint claims Samuel Pinkus took advantage of her age and “physical infirmities” to deprive her of royalties from To Kill a Mockingbird. In 2007, Lee, while in an assisted-living facility, signed an agreement to assign her copyright on the book to Pinkus’s agency. It was reassigned last year, and he was removed as her agent, but, according to the complaint, continued receiving royalties. “Harper Lee had no idea she had assigned her copyright,” Lee’s lawyer wrote in the filing.